Serum Amyloid A is a Novel Prognostic Biomarker in Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Ni, Xiao-Chun,Yi, Yong,Fu, Yi-Peng,He, Hong-Wei,Cai, Xiao-Yan,Wang, Jia-Xing,Zhou, Jian,Fan, Jia,Qiu, Shuang-Jian Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.24

Purpose: To investigate the prognostic value of serum amyloid A (SAA) in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) undergoing surgery. Materials and Methods: Preoperative serum samples of 328 patients with HCC who underwent curative resection and of 47 patients with benign liver lesion were assayed. Serum levels of SAA were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and its correlations with clinicopathological characteristics and survival were explored. Results: Levels of SAA were significantly higher in patients with HCC than those with benign liver lesion. There were strong correlations between preoperative serum SAA level and tumor size and more advanced BCLC stage. On univariate analysis, elevated SAA was associated with reduced disease-free survival and overall survival (p=0.001 and 0.03, respectively). Multivariate analyses showed that serum SAA level was an independent prognostic factor for overall survival (hazard ratio 2.80, p=0.01). Conclusions: High SAA serum level is a novel biomarker for the prognosis of HCC patients.

Postmenopausal Hormone Therapy is Associated with in Situ Breast Cancer Risk

Ni, Xiao-Jian,Xia, Tian-Song,Zhao, Ying-Chun,Ma, Jing-Jing,Zhao, Jie,Liu, Xiao-An,Ding, Qiang,Zha, Xiao-Ming,Wang, Shui Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2012 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.13 No.8

Background: The relationship between postmenopausal hormone therapy (HT) and invasive breast cancer has been extensively investigated, but that with breast carcinoma in situ (BCIS) has received relatively little attention. The aim of our present study was to review and summarize the evidence provided by longitudinal studies on the association between postmenopausal HT use and BCIS risk. Methods: A comprehensive literature search for articles published up to May 2012 was performed. Prior to performing a meta-analysis, the studies were evaluated for publication bias and heterogeneity. Relative risk (RR) or odds ratio (OR) values were calculated using 14 reports (8 case-control studies and 6 cohort studies), published between 1986 and 2012. Results: There was evidence of an association between ever postmenopausal estrogen use and BCIS based on a random-effects model (RR = 1.25, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.01, 1.55). However, we found no strong evidence of an association between ever postmenopausal estrogen combined with progesterone use and BCIS using a randomeffects model (RR = 1.55, 95% CI = 0.95, 2.51). Furthermore, our analysis showed a strong association between "> 5 years duration" of estrogen or estrogen combined with progesterone use and BCIS. Furthermore, current use of any HT is associated with increased risk of BCIS in cohort studies. Additional well-designed large studies are now required to validate this association in different populations.

New Model of In-situ Xenograft Lymphangiogenesis by a Human Colonic Adenocarcinoma Cell Line in Nude Mice

Sun, Jian-Jun,Jing, Wei,Ni, Yan-Yan,Yuan, Xiao-Jian,Zhou, Hai-Hua,Fan, Yue-Zu Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2012 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.13 No.6

Objective: To explore a new model of in-situ xenograft lymphangiogenesis of human colonic adenocarcinomas in nude mice. Method: On the basis of establishing subcutaneous xenograft lymphangiogenesis model of human colonic adenocarcinoms, in-situ xenografts were established through the in situ growth of the HT-29 human colonic adenocarcinoma cell line in nude mice. The numbers of lymphangiogenic microvessels, the expression of lymphatic endothelial cell markers lymphatic vessel endothelial hyaloronic acid receptor-1 (LYVE-1), D2-40 and the lymphatic endothelial growth factors vascular endothelial growth factor-C (VEGF-C), -D (VEGF-D) and receptor-3 (VEGFR-3) were compared by immunohistochemical staining, Western bolt and quantitative RT-PCR in xenograft in-situ models. Results: Some microlymphatics with thin walls, large and irregular or collapsed cavities and increased LMVD, with strong positive of LYVE-1, D2-40 in immunohistochemistry, were observed, identical with the morphological characteristics of lymphatic vessels and capillaries. Expression of LYVE-1 and D2-40 proteins and mRNAs were significantly higher in xenograpfts in-situ than in the negative control group(both P<0.01). Moreover, the expression of VEGF-C, VEGF-D and VEGFR-3 proteins and mRNAs were significantly higher in xenografts in-situ (both P<0.01), in conformity with the signal regulation of the VEGF-C,-D/VEGFR-3 axis of tumor lymphangiogenesis. Conclusions: In-situ xenografts of a human colonic adenocarcinoma cell line demonstrate tumor lymphangiogenesis. This novel in-situ animal model should be useful for further studying mechanisms of lymph node metastasis, drug intervention and anti-metastasis therapy in colorectal cancer.

Associations of hypoxia inducible factor-1a gene polymorphisms with susceptibility to digestive tract cancers: a case–control study and meta-analysis

Zhi-Hai Ni,Xian-Jun Liang,Jing-Gang Mo,Yi Zhang,Jian-Hua Liang,Yu-Sha Yang,Yong Zhou,Zhao-Hua Li,Jian-Liang Zhang,Yin-Lu Ding,Peng Zhang,Jin-Qing Wang 한국유전학회 2015 Genes & Genomics Vol.37 No.11

We aim to investigate the correlations of hypoxia inducible factor-1a (HIF-1a) C1772T (rs11549465) and G1790A (rs11549467) gene polymorphisms with digestive tract cancers. A sum of 267 digestive tract cancers patients were hospitalized in Taizhou Central Hospital of Zhejiang Province as case group between December 2012 and December 2014. Additionally, 275 healthy people who had a physical examination in our hospital at the same time were selected as control group. Polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism was utilized for detecting allele and genotype frequency of different locus in case and control group. Meta-analysis was performed using Comprehensive Metaanalysis 2.0 (Biostat Inc., Englewood, New Jersey, USA). Our result showed statistical significance only exists in family history of cancer between case and control group (P\0.05). Both C1772T (rs11549465) and G1790A (rs11549467) polymorphisms showed positive correlations with an increasing risk of digestive tract cancers. The frequencies of TT genotype of C1772T (rs11549465) and GA, AA genotypes of G1790A (rs11549467) polymorphisms in case group were evidently higher compared with the controls (all P\0.05). Besides, the comparison of allele and dominant models of HIF-1a C1772T (rs11549465) and G1790A (rs11549467) between two groups showed a significant difference (all P\0.05). Meta-analysis results further confirmed that the onset risk of digestive tract cancers may be improved under allele and dominant models of HIF-1a C1772T (rs11549465) and G1790A (rs11549467) (all P\0.05). Single nucleotide polymorphisms of HIF-1a C1772T (rs11549465) and G1790A (rs11549467) may play a role in development of digestive tract cancers.

Low Counts of γδ T Cells in Peritumoral Liver Tissue are Related to More Frequent Recurrence in Patients with Hepatocellular Carcinoma after Curative Resection

Cai, Xiao-Yan,Wang, Jia-Xing,Yi, Yong,He, Hong-Wei,Ni, Xiao-Chun,Zhou, Jian,Cheng, Yun-Feng,Jin, Jian-Jun,Fan, Jia,Qiu, Shuang-Jian Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.2

Objectives: TCR-gamma-delta+T cells (${\gamma}{\delta}$ T cells) are non-conventional T lymphocytes that can recognize and eradicate tumor cells. Our previous studies showed that infiltration and function of ${\gamma}{\delta}$ T cells were substantially attenuated in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, their prognostic value was not clarified. Methods: The association between ${\gamma}{\delta}$ T cells and the clinical outcomes was determined by immunohistochemistry (IHC) in a HCC patient cohort (n = 342). Results:Immunohistochemistry showed decreased infiltration of ${\gamma}{\delta}$ T cells in tumoral tissues compared with paired peritumoral tissues. The counts of ${\gamma}{\delta}$ T cells in peritumoral tissues were negatively correlated with tumor size (P = 0.005). Survival analysis showed that the levels of peritumoral ${\gamma}{\delta}$T cells were related to both time to recurrence (TTR) and overall survival (OS) (P = 0.010 and P = 0.036, respectively) in univariate analysis, and related to TTR in multivariate analysis (P = 0.014, H.R. [95% CI] = 0.682 [0.502-0.927]). Furthermore, the level of peritumoral ${\gamma}{\delta}$ T cells showed independent prognostic value for TTR in Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer (BCLC) stage A patients (P = 0.038, H.R. [95% CI] = 0.727 [0.537-0.984]). However, tumoral ${\gamma}{\delta}$ T cells did not show independent prognostic value for either TTR or OS in HCC patients. Conclusions: Low counts of ${\gamma}{\delta}$ T cells in peritumoral liver tissue are related to a higher incidence of recurrence in HCC and can predict postoperative recurrence, especially in those with early-stage HCC.

Ellipsometric Study of the Optical Properties of Silver Oxide Prepared by Reactive Magnetron Sputtering

Jian-Hong Qiu,Liang-Yao Chen,Jia-Ni Yu,Jing Li,Peng Zhou,Qing-Hai ong,ong-You Wang,Xiao-Yong Gao,Yue-Mei Yang,Yu-Xiang Zheng 한국물리학회 2005 THE JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN PHYSICAL SOCIETY Vol.46 No.2

A series of AgOx thin films were prepared by the DC-magnetron reactive-sputtering method at room temperature under different sputtering power and oxygen to argon ratio conditions. The optical properties of the AgOx films were studied by analysis of the spectroscopic ellipsometry data with the Tauc-Lorentz multi-oscillator model in the 1.5 4.5-eV photon-energy range. The spectra of absorption, XPS and PL were measured. The results indicate that the AgOx film changes from metallic to dielectric structure with increasing oxygen flux. Under the saturated oxidation condition after annealing, the dominating component will be Ag2O in the film to show indirect interband transitions occurring at about 0.57 eV and 2.43 eV, respectively, that are in agreement with the results of PL measurement and Lorentz analysis.

MULTIPLE PERIODIC SOLUTIONS OF p-LAPLACIAN EQUATION WITH ONE-SIDE NAGUMO CONDITION

Jian Jun Zhang,Wen Bin Liu,Jin Bo Ni,Tai Yong Chen 대한수학회 2008 대한수학회지 Vol.45 No.6

In this paper, the existence and multiplicity of solution of periodic solutions of p-Laplacian boundary value problem are studied by using degree theory and upper and lower solutions method. Some known results are improved. In this paper, the existence and multiplicity of solution of periodic solutions of p-Laplacian boundary value problem are studied by using degree theory and upper and lower solutions method. Some known results are improved.

Experimental Studies on the Motion and Discharge Behavior of Free Conducting Wire Particle in DC GIL

Jian Wang,Zhiyuan Wang,Xiaoru Ni,Sihua Liu 대한전기학회 2017 Journal of Electrical Engineering & Technology Vol.12 No.2

This study aims to restrain free conducting wire-type particles which are commonly and dangerously existing within DC gas-insulated transmission lines. A realistic platform of a coaxial cylindrical electrode was established by using a high-speed camera and a partial discharge (PD) monitor to observe the motion, PD, and breakdown of these particles. The probabilities of standing or bouncing, which can be affected by the length of the particles, were also quantitatively examined. The corona images of the particles were recorded, and particle-triggered PD signals were monitored and extracted. Breakdown images were also obtained. The air-gap breakdown with the particles was subjected to mechanism analysis on the basis of stream theory. Results reveal that the lifting voltage of the wire particles is almost irrelevant to their length but is proportional to the square root of their radius. Short particles correspond to high bouncing probability. The intensity and frequency of PD and the micro-discharge gap increase as the length of the particles increases. The breakdown voltage decreases as the length of the particles decreases.

The Inhibition Effect of Triptolide on Human Endometrial Carcinoma Cell Line HEC-1B: a in vitro and in vivo Studies

Ni, Jing,Wu, Qiang,Sun, Zhi-Hua,Zhong, Jian,Cai, Yu,Huang, Xin-En Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2015 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.16 No.11

Background: To investigate the inhibitory effect and the underlying mechanism of triptolide on cultured human endometrial carcinoma HEC-1B cells and corresponding xenograft. Materials and Methods: For in vitro studies, the inhibition effect of proliferation on HEC-1B cell by triptolide was determined by MTT assay; cell cycle and apoptosis of the triptolide-treated and untreated cells were detected by flow cytometry. For in vivo studies, a xenograft tumor model of human endometrial carcinoma was established using HEC-1B cells, then the tumor-bearing mice were treated with high, medium, and low-dose ($8{\mu}g$, $4{\mu}g$ and $2{\mu}g/day$) triptolide or cisplatin at $40{\mu}g/day$ or normal saline as control. The mice were treated for 10-15 days, during which body weight of the mice and volume of the xenograft were weighted. Then expression of Bcl-2 and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) was analyzed by SABC immunohistochemistry. Results: Cell growth was significantly inhibited by triptolide as observed by an inverted phase contrast microscope; the results of MTT assay indicated that triptolide inhibits HEC-1B cell proliferation in a dose and time-dependent manner; flow cytometry showed that low concentration (5 ng/ml) of triptolide induces cell cycle arrest of HEC-1B cells mainly at S phase, while higher concentration (40 or 80 ng/ml) induced cell cycle arrest of HEC-1B cells mainly at G2/M phase, and apoptosis of the cells was also induced. High-dose triptolide showed a similar tumor-inhibitory effect as cisplatin (-50%); high-dose triptolide significantly inhibited Bcl-2 and VEGF expression in the xenograft model compared to normal saline control (P<0.05). Conclusions: triptolide inhibits HEC-1B cell growth both in vitro and in mouse xenograft model. Cell cycle of the tumor cells was arrested at S and G2/M phase, and the mechanism may involve induction of tumor cell apoptosis and inhibition of tumor angiogenesis.

Experimental Studies on the Motion and Discharge Behavior of Free Conducting Wire Particle in DC GIL

Wang, Jian,Wang, Zhiyuan,Ni, Xiaoru,Liu, Sihua The Korean Institute of Electrical Engineers 2017 Journal of Electrical Engineering & Technology Vol.12 No.2

This study aims to restrain free conducting wire-type particles which are commonly and dangerously existing within DC gas-insulated transmission lines. A realistic platform of a coaxial cylindrical electrode was established by using a high-speed camera and a partial discharge (PD) monitor to observe the motion, PD, and breakdown of these particles. The probabilities of standing or bouncing, which can be affected by the length of the particles, were also quantitatively examined. The corona images of the particles were recorded, and particle-triggered PD signals were monitored and extracted. Breakdown images were also obtained. The air-gap breakdown with the particles was subjected to mechanism analysis on the basis of stream theory. Results reveal that the lifting voltage of the wire particles is almost irrelevant to their length but is proportional to the square root of their radius. Short particles correspond to high bouncing probability. The intensity and frequency of PD and the micro-discharge gap increase as the length of the particles increases. The breakdown voltage decreases as the length of the particles decreases.